Coldwell Banker Chesapeake Real Estate announced today the affiliation of five new and experienced associates. The company services the residential real estate markets of the six counties of the upper eastern shore from regional real estate centers in Chestertown and Easton.
“The real estate brokerage business model has fundamentally changed”, says Hugh Smith, Broker and Managing Partner. “We call it ‘The Great Inversion’. Five years ago Buyers found a real estate agent and started looking for property on the eastern shore. Today, the buyers look for the property first and then look for a real estate agent to guide them through the increasingly complex transaction.”
“Finding success in the new real estate market requires a whole new skill set,” says Smith, “Some traditional agents make the effort to learn these skills and prosper. For the most part, however, we as an industry need to hire and train digital natives to guide Buyers and Sellers into the long recovery from 2008. I am excited by the new additions to our team”.
William (“Billy”) Blessing joins the team as a new agent but no stranger to information technology. Billy is a digital native who has worked since 2005 as an electronic Fraud specialist for Hebron Savings Bank. A native of Easton, Billy is a graduate of Easton High School and attended Salisbury University. He, his wife, and two children are residents of Trappe. “I look forward to making home ownership on the eastern shore accessible to young families like ourselves”, says Blessing, “I love the quality of life here.” Blessing will operate from Coldwell Banker’s regional real estate center on Dover Street in Easton and plans to list and sell real estate primarily in Dorchester, Caroline and Talbot Counties.
Jessica English comes to real estate from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and a career in Human Services. A graduate of Washington College, Jessica never went home. She has been a resident of Cecil County for the past 15 years and is active in the community. ”My two children give me a window into the community”, says Jessica,” I see things on a daily basis that are useful to buyers and sellers of eastern shore real estate. The internet puts a lot of information in the consumer’s hands. I can help people put that information in a local and human perspective.” English, who plans to list and sell real estate primarily in northern Kent and all of Cecil County, will operate from Coldwell Banker Chesapeake Real Estate’s Regional Real Estate Center in Chestertown.
“Buying and selling residential real estate has become a very complex process”, according to new associate Rick Parreco, “My experience in both real estate and construction can help buyers and sellers of eastern shore real estate navigate that process.” Parreco, who lives on Kent Island, is a real estate veteran who comes to Coldwell Banker from a small independent company. “I look forward to putting the international network and advanced technology of Coldwell Banker to work for my Sellers”. Parreco, plans to continue his real estate practice primarily on Kent Island and in Anne Arundel County from the Easton Regional Office.
Doug Megargee, another graduate of Washington College, is well known around Kent County. An avid sportsman, Megargee comes to Coldwell Banker Chesapeake following a long career in the marine trades industry and a short stint with a small independent real estate company. “The entire real estate market, such as it is, has moved on-line”, says Megargee. “I know the upper eastern shore like the back of my hand, but I am not a digital native. I need training to adapt to the new business model. Coldwell Banker has the tools and training I need to grow.” Megargee, who will operate from the Chestertown Sales Center, plans to focus his efforts on Kent County and northern Queen Anne’s.
William “Bill” Haddaway, a Talbot County native, is new to the real estate industry but no stranger to the mid-shore or sales. Anyone who has bought a car locally in the last thirty years has probably bought one from Haddaway. “I have always had an interest in real estate”, says Haddaway, “I think my local knowledge, customer service, and sales skills will match-up will with my customer’s needs. Haddaway, who will joi n the Easton Sales Center, intends to focus his efforts on Dorchester, Caroline, and Talbot Counties.
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